EAST LANSING, MI. – Grand Rapids native Steve Tuttle attended Saturday’s Michigan High School Athletic Association’s boys basketball championship games at the Breslin Center, and there was something in the event program that caught his attention.

“Of the 82 state championship game records, I’ve seen 72 of them,” said Tuttle, a 1970 Creston High School graduate who now resides in Shelby.

Tuttle has seen plenty of records over the past half century. He has seen great teams, thrilling games and big-time players, too, when it comes to the MHSAA finals.

Saturday’s contests marked the 52nd consecutive year that Tuttle has attended the state’s championship games. His father, the late Vernon Tuttle, took Tuttle to the 1963 championships, and he hasn’t missed the finals since. Tuttle left his home at 5:30 a.m. Saturday, met up with a group of friends and headed over to Michigan State University and watched Muskegon, Milan, Detroit Consortium and Southfield Christian win state titles.

“I was in the sixth grade at Riverside Elementary (in Grand Rapids) when my dad first took me to the finals, and I have been going ever since,” said Tuttle, 61. “It is something that I have always enjoyed, and Lord willing, I will be able to keep this tradition going.”

Tuttle, a retired Grand Rapids area teacher whose career included teaching industrial arts at Union High School during the 1980s, called Muskegon the best team of this weekend’s tournament. The Big Reds, who won the Class A title, aren't the only great team he has seen over the past half-century, though.

Check out Tuttle’s take on some of the most memorable moments from the past 52 years.

Best teams:

“Some of the River Rouge teams in the mid-1960s and early 1970s were the best teams that I saw in my life,” Tuttle said. “They won state championships from 1961-through-1965, and I saw the ones from ’63-through-65, and then they won state championships from 1969-through-1972.

“Ottawa Hills won back-to-back championships in 1968 and 1969, and Bob Hendrickson was their coach. I played for Creston from 1968-through-70, and those Ottawa teams were really good.

“One of the most exciting teams was Shelby in the early ‘70s when Shelby had Paul Griffin on the team and they won back-to-back C titles. He went on to play in the NBA."

Best games:

“Grand Rapids East Christian beat River Rouge (76-66) in 1966, and East Christian had a guy by the name of Bill VanderWoude, and he scored 36 points,” Tuttle said. “He was a monster. It was at the old Jenison Field House.

“The South Christian team with David Kool in 2005 when they beat Muskegon Heights (67-60) was a good game, too.”

Best players

“Ralph Simpson of Detroit Pershing and Antoine Joubert of Detroit Southwestern were two of the top players I saw,” he said. “Ralph went on to play for Michigan State and Antoine played at Michigan. I also saw Chris Webber when they won three-in-a-row from ’95-97.

“I also saw a player by the name of Bob Gale who came down from the Upper Peninsula. He played for Trout Creek, and he scored 40 points (against Covert in 1966). The year South Christian won it with David Kool, David scored 43 points against the Heights. He was one of the best players I’ve seen.”